Kissing Booth

"C'mon, let's go to the kissing booth!" Nagisa persisted effervescent-ly and tugged Makoto's arm to the direction of the booth Rei was occupying.

On the night where the school's carnival lasted for nearly half the night, Makoto hesitated in going over the Kissing Booth. First of all, Nagisa knew Haruka was working in the booth with Rei and Rin. Second of all, he was lately trying to pair him and Haruka together. And three, Makoto felt consternation regulating and forbidding Makoto to swallow his nervousness down when he saw Haruka just behind Rei with a box and looking over to him and Nagisa.

"D-do we have to?" Makoto blurted diffidently and tried resisting Nagisa's pulls. But to no avail did Nagisa cease and shook his head flamboyantly.

"Yes!" he said. "We need this, it's for charity! Think of all the poor children you'll be helping with your money—and just a little kiss won't hurt, you know?"

Makoto thought Nagisa used the children-and-charity idea to make him reconsider; and it would usually work…but not this time! He knew fully well what Nagisa was doing and yet now before he could even speak his mind, Nagisa and he were in front of Rei who was sitting in his chair, looking rather bashful.

"Um…are you-?"

"I'm going first!" declared Nagisa joyfully, shooing Makoto to the side and with his spare money pulled it out ostentatiously to Rei.

Makoto glanced away shyly to let Nagisa pull Rei out of nowhere and smoothing him without fear of anyone watching. Just over the corner of his right eye, he saw Rin with a separate box full of folded money with Haruka looking over his shoulder and just that moment—which felt like a scary split heartbeat—Makoto was jealous of Rin getting more attention… Not that he was envious of Rin who had Sousuke. But it felt rather shocking to see them so close together.

Haruka noticed Makoto staring abstracted over at him and Rin and gave a quick wave. Right away he caught Makoto standing up rigidly and moving his head around to the sides as though he waved at someone else.

"Are you gonna kiss him when it's his turn?" Rin asked, a tone of seriousness and a little deleteriously.

Haruka looked down at Rin, a skeptical and the are-you-serious-Rin expression.

"What makes you think Makoto is going to pay to kiss someone?"

"Well," Rin said, sounding obnoxious, "for one thing, this is the only booth who supports kittens. Second, Makoto totally has a crush on you and yet you're too blind to notice all the cute things he does for you." He moved his head up to face Haruka's skepticism plastered all over. "Plus, I know you notice some of those cute things-"

"He's being his usual self,"

"Yeah, but...he wants to know if you're noticing some of them or not! And not to mention this on a sudden moment, but I think Nagisa's right that you two are hopeless when it comes to confessing your undying love for Makoto." Rin looked down at the folded money on the table, scuffled them in one go and put them inside the plastic charity box.

But when Rin was about to leave, Haruka asked, "...was that true?"

"What was?" Rin asked.

"...that I'm hopeless in confessing?"

Rin's cool, confident look turned to a stupefied one. Mulling over the concept of telling Haruka the truth seemed treacherous but at the same time rollicking. However, as a true friend, he had to make the self-evident answer.

"Haruka..." he dreaded the answer for a moment but replied, "you are indeed a blunt person. All the things Nagisa said like you being too blunt that'll make people cry or that when you get a flirt comment or something, you'll go scary out of nowhere. Honestly, you are hella blunt and I wish the best for Makoto as he will have no choice to handle that. Goodbye." And just like that, he got up and bolted out their booth section and toward the crowds.

Haruka stared exceedingly and, pardoning himself, deleted the memory and moved away from the table. Just then, he saw Rei wobbling away and saw the many purple love bites, wet saliva marks on his neck, his glasses fumbling awkwardly on his face and a shit-eating grin.

I'm not even going to ask... thought Haruka.

Going over to the front table, he could see that Makoto was at the front and was shaking slightly. Haruka didn't understand why he was acting this way since it was just a kiss on the lips. It was nothing special, really. But then again, Haruka had taken some consideration into what Rin had spoken and thought broadly of the intimation with Makoto suggesting mutely toward him.

Meanwhile, Makoto with difficulty stood at the presence of Haruka who sat heedlessly in his chair as though to wait for something. But what was that something? If Makoto couldn't figure it could then no one would...

"Are you going to-"

"Huh?" Makoto jabbered too briskly. Standing here so awkwardly it was no wonder why Makoto wasn't going to run away instead of embarrassing himself further.

"...to, well, pay?" Haruka finished after the abhorrent silence dragged too long.

"For...what?"

"To kiss me." Haruka said bluntly. Damn it, he thought angrily at himself, Rin was right, I'm too blunt...

Ki-kiss him? Makoto thought shockingly. "Um...what a-are you supporting for the charity?" If he could strive the conversation it might give him a well-deserve chance of leaving without embarrassing Haruka or himself.

"For cats who have no homes," Haruka stated after the umpteenth time.

"Oh is that right, Haru?" muttered Makoto sheepishly. He knew what Haruka's booth was supporting but it gave him comfort talking rather than...!

"So you're going to support us by kissing me?" Haruka inquired with a hint of aloofness.

"Uh...can I kiss you without paying? I-I mean, no, I meant to say 'Can I pay you without kissing' Haru!" His hands were fumbled stupidly in the air, discomfiture started swelling in his heart and he just couldn't handle the pressure.

"If that's what you want," Haruka replied earnestly. "But...I wouldn't mind if you did kiss me."

Makoto stood there and his brain malfunctioned. It was like a computer downloading, pending its time by waiting both itself and the user and suddenly falter out of nowhere. It irritated both Haruka and Makoto. But how can he change the situation?

Suddenly, Nagisa stepped between Makoto from the table and said cheekily, "Hey, Haru, I got some spare change for Makoto!"

Before either could say anything, Nagisa handed out a hundred yen coin, placed it on the table and scurried away with a smile of mischievousness. Makoto's body paralyzed in horror, Haruka grabbed Nagisa's coin and looked up, waiting for Makoto to...

"...are you ready or...?"

Makoto, flustered and paranoid, couldn't believe this moment was going to happen if he just leaned forward to kiss. Doing so, he slowly motioned himself down as their faces were just inches away. And Makoto was just frozen. To Haruka at one point in life he wondered if Makoto's eyes were lovelier up close. Haruka stared into Makoto's lovely eyes, and realized just how beautiful they are. Makoto also never knew how alluring the other's bluish eyes are.

Thinking Makoto was just shy, Haruka leaned forward and connected their lips. It felt so nice to feel Makoto's lips touch his, the way they were plumped but pink and soft. The others he had kissed meant nothing as Makoto began to alleviate their lips. But when Makoto was about to pull away, Haruka placed a hand behind Makoto's head and pulled him for another kiss which became deeper and meaningful.

As their tongues tasted each other's wet cavern Haruka felt his mind go into ecstasy and was getting lustful.

It was Makoto who pulled away first and said, "I-I'm sorry, I don't have any money for that second-"

"Consider it free," Haruka said and smiled a sweet smile that was both rare and dazzling.

While Makoto's heart was starting to quiet down he felt his cheeks flush bright pink.

From afar, Nagisa was standing by the snack booth while nibbling on some cotton candy. His plan, of course, worked perfectly.